Climate Resilient Retrofits

This comprehensive database of multi-hazard resilient retrofits displays adaptation measures (retrofits of existing buildings and things to include in new builds) for climate conditions and events of concern in Canada (floods/extreme precipitation, heat, wildfire, wind, and snow/ice). Information about each measure has been categorized into fields such as the ‘adaptation objective,’ the ‘problem’ the hazard poses to the building, and the type of measure (physical or action-oriented). The database also provides a “rating” to each measure for the attributes of relative cost, time and effort required, expertise needed, degree of invasiveness, which measures conflict or work well together, and which measures increase energy efficiency and/or decrease greenhouse gas emissions for climate mitigation.

Homeowners and contractors can use this tool to become familiar with the impacts of climate change on buildings and make informed decisions about how buildings can withstand those impacts. Homeowners and contractors can search and filter by area of a home they are interested in and/or by which hazard(s) they want to protect against and learn about how those measures help and which conflict with or go well together.

Funding and input for this work has been generously provided by Halifax Regional Municipality, as part of its HalifACT program, and the National Research Council of Canada's Climate Resilient Built Environment Initiative, in support of delivering the Government of Canada's Adaptation Action Plan, and towards achieving commitments under the National Adaptation Strategy. 

When it comes to engaging in residential flood resiliency retrofits, there is a general lack of consensus on which implementation measures to choose and how to best implement them. Additionally, guidelines and standards are often unclear and written using highly technical language that is not user-friendly for homeowners or contractors that install flood risk reduction measures. To address these concerns, Clean Foundation engaged Partners for Action to produce a plain language, semi-technical manual of household flood resilient retrofits for contractors and homeowners to enable consistency in installation and at the same time, confidence in the work done in terms of whether it meets relevant standards and reflects recommended best practices. 

This handbook is designed to support homeowners or contractors in understanding and implementing measures to enhance the flood resilience of single-family residential properties. Drawing from expertise in flood resilience and practical knowledge from experienced contractors, this handbook provides a step-by-step guide to improve the resiliency of single-family residential properties against flooding. 

Building on their shared commitment to advancing climate-resilient communities, P4A partnered with ICLEI Canada to support the June 2025 housing update for Climate Insight—an open-access, online platform that equips communities across Canada with the data and resources needed for building and renovating in a changing climate. Funded in part by the Government of Canada, and delivered by ICLEI Canada, Climate Insight serves as a centralized destination for actionable, locally relevant information on low-carbon, climate-resilient housing and infrastructure. In response to urgent housing challenges in communities across the country, Climate Insight’s housing update included an expanded suite of resources such as infrastructure options for adaptation, case studies, codes and standard, and planning tools.

Together, P4A and ICLEI integrated the floods, extreme heat and fire portions of P4A’s foundational research and Multi-Hazard Residential Retrofits Database into Climate Insight’s infrastructure options for adaptation, enhancing the platform’s ability to provide practical, adaptation-focused options for housing and related infrastructure.